All was well until that Wednesday night. “Mumbi wake up,” her father’s rough voice snapped her out of a sweet dream “come out here girl and make it quick.” She rubbed her sleepy eyes as she walked into the sitting room. “What time is it?” she mumbled “What does it matter what the time is?” her father asked. In the dim light provided by the moon she could distinguish her drunken father reeling at the entrance. He was holding onto the hand of what seemed to be a woman. “This is your mother, “he said. “If those elders want me to look after you properly I’m going to do it in style.” He pushed the woman towards Mumbi, almost knocking her against the doorframe. After this dramatic announcement he staggered to his bedroom and banged the door. Mumbi looked for a lamp. She found herself staring at a shy, pretty girl. “You are not much older than me,” Mumbi blurted. The girl said nothing. They stared at each other uneasily for several minutes. At first Mumbi resented her new stepmother, Njeri. “What does she think she is doing moving into our house pretending to be my friend,” Mumbi complained to her friends. “Nobody wants her.” Njeri at first moved about the home tentatively. Njoroge left her in Mumbi’s care. After that first evening he never talked to her and was not aware of her presence in the home. Mumbi wondered how a beautiful girl could throw herself at somebody who obviously had no time for her. She took a long time to learn of the hard life that had almost sent the poor girl to the wolves. Njoroge rescued her from a life of certain doom by bringing her to his home.